Renato Adams: Police investigation into X6 murder was poor

Adams made the remarks Thursday evening in an interview on Mutabaruka's Stepping Razor talk show, where he reiterated his availability to serve as police commissioner if called upon to do so.

With regards to the controversial 'X6 Murder' case, Adams opined that there are some people that are treated differently than others in Jamaica.

“There was corruption,” he declared.

Businessman Patrick Powell was freed by the state, as the crown prosecution offered no further evidence in the case which Jamaicans described as the "X6 trial". The prosecution could not prove that Powell was on the scene when Kingston College student Khajeel Mais was shot in July 2011.

“That man it seemed had influence on whatever. But along the line too, I followed the case, and there was a lack of proper investigation techniques which were applied. And if they were applied , they wereusurped along the way by some corrupt elements,” said Adams who retired from the force at 63 in 2012.

Mais was travelling in a taxi in Havendale to meet up with friends to attend a fete at the Meadowbrook High School, when he was killed. The killer was believed to be driving a BMW X6 sports utility vehicle. Powell's Belgrade, St Andrew, home was subsequently raided by the police and two BMW X6 vehicles were seized. However, the case began to crumble when main witness Wayne Wright, the taxi driver, said he did not see the shooter. He added that the cops asked him to lie that he saw the killer.

Adams qualified his assessment by admitting his own faults.

“I am no paragon of virtue. All of us have sinned and have come short of the glory of the Lord. But as a policeman there are certain things mi nah do,” he said.

Earlier in the interview, Adams revealed that he knows of senior members of the force who did not support Dr Carl Williams, who resigned as Commissioner of Police last week. But he still gave Williams afailing grade.

“If officialdom, if the status quo, if the people, if the Police Services Commission, if the politicians want me to take up the top leadership, then I will give it great consideration,” he said.

Adams' crime plan includes deploying his top brass at the four corners of the country to extinguish criminal networks.

“I would deploy my senior people of the force in the four corners of this country and they would run operations. And if they do not do it, I would bring them to the services commission and have them retired in the public interest. That is what the commissioner is to do.”